Inhutani I to Invest in Rubber

State plantation firm Inhutani I will spend Rp 2.75 trillion ($292 million) to develop a 55,000 hectare rubber plantation in Long Nah, East Kalimantan, as demand for rubber is expected to increase.

Inhutani’s president director Irsyal Yasman said during the weekend that the investment was part of the company’s revitalization plan. The company estimated that it would need Rp 50 million per hectare to develop rubber plantations in East Kalimantan.

“The funding will come from our internal reserves as well as partnering with other state companies or private firms,” he said.

He said Inhutani would initially develop 5,000 hectares and was still looking for possible partners to form a consortium.

“We have offered a partnership scheme to state-owned plantation company PTPN III. There’s already a national rubber manufacturer interested in forming a syndicate with us,” he said, without naming the potential partner.

Inhutani I controls 73,316 hectares of forests to be used for their wood.

Inhutani I’s finance director I Novian Zein said that to support the company’s goal, the firm would start optimizing its unused land in urban areas for commercial purposes.

“We have a lot of under utilization assets in the middle of the city, which have the potential to generate money,” he said.

He said the company had 272,000 square meters of land scattered in Jakarta and Bekasi as well as in Balikpapan, Samarinda and Tarakan in East Kalimantan.

“Our assets in Jakarta are located in the Kebayoran Baru area, and its market value is estimated at Rp 1 trillion. We can use this land to build property,” he said.

Indonesia’s growing automotive sector boosts demand for tires, which paves the way for rubber firms to benefit.